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My Ryoken wannabe thread

littlejimmythatcould

littlejimmythatcould

1/2 ton status
Joined
Feb 6, 2006
Posts
797
Reaction score
1
Location
Clovis, NM
Alright time to get my electrical stuff squared away. I'm getting tired of my Jimmy eating batteries. I am going to upgrade to a dual battery set up and try to get all of my electrical problems taken care of. Dual batteries will let me self jump start in the event that the problems are still there. And in the future, it would help to have them with a winch.

If the title lured you in here, I am not trying to copy Ryoken's stuff (even though the battery trays are similar), I'm just borrowing some of his ideas. No one could copy the quality of his work:bow: You're the heat man:bow:

So with that in mind, let me take you on an adventure into the nasty wiring mess that is my Jimmy. An adventure that will take you deep into the heart of hillbilly wiring, full of popped fuses, burnt sheathing and maybe a small fire
or two....

I started by replacing the hillbilly ram air hood with a stock hood. Some of you might thank me for not having to stare at the hood scoop any more. Thanks everyone for holding back ALL of the comments about it and just giving the friendly jeers. I've learned the error of my ways. It's nice to be able to see while driving again.

I don't know how to weld aluminum so my tray is contructed out of .040 T3 aluminum. I have to still add some extrusion supports to the bottom, but it is still plenty strong. It begins...

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Is it me, or do your aluminum welds look a whole lot like rivets? :haha: j/k man. The tray looks good and the new hood makes it look like a completely different truck. I say good move and bravo! :waytogo:
 
yeah, I got called in for weekend duty and didn't have anything to do so I threw it together in a couple hours. Here's some more pics of what I am dealing with. The velocity stack in the pic is no longer on there. And to the left you can see where I have removed the heater and will mount the battery tray there.

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=196829

This is my original thread. My electrical stuff is way better than it was, but it could be better. You can see that the heater is still in there in that thread. Making a little bit of progress. Now I have to decide on which dual battery set up I need. I believe a dual battery isolater is what is is called.

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Hey Todd....

Thanks for the props man... Hope it works as good for you as it has me...

I'm guessing thats going in the same spot as mine? Looks good in aluminum...

Question tho, hopefully I'm not throwing a wrench in the works here for ya... I take it you've taken battery measurements, but have you thought of a holddown system for it?

That why I ran mine straight out first, to account for the holddown...

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yeah, I measured my walmart Maxx battery and gave about 1/2 inch around in all directions from it (to account in for different sizes of future batteries) and my hold down system will consist of a 3 point hold down that goes across the tops of both batteries using all thread with nuts and washers (since I don't know how to weld the all thread to the tray), but it will then allow for different heights of batteries and will be fully adjustable. I am fixing to take the fender wells out to clear a set of 35's that I got for free :woot: which will give me more room because it is not wanting to fit in there very nicely right now. On average I am looking at $120 to $200 for the dual battery kit plus the price of another battery $60.
 
littlejimmythatcould said:
yeah, I measured my walmart Maxx battery and gave about 1/2 inch around in all directions from it (to account in for different sizes of future batteries) and my hold down system will consist of a 3 point hold down that goes across the tops of both batteries using all thread with nuts and washers (since I don't know how to weld the all thread to the tray), but it will then allow for different heights of batteries and will be fully adjustable. I am fixing to take the fender wells out to clear a set of 35's that I got for free :woot: which will give me more room because it is not wanting to fit in there very nicely right now. On average I am looking at $120 to $200 for the dual battery kit plus the price of another battery $60.
Click to expand...


ok, cool...

hey, you just brought up a point that may not have been mentioned in my thread.. It's not really gonna apply to you if your ditching the wells, and a dual group 24 tray might not have the issue. But with my dual 27 tray, I had to notch my well... I knew I would have to when I planned it, and it worked out fine, but I don't recall if I mentioned that in my thread...

And please, if you have any questions on the different ways to wire it up, gimme a shout... marine switch is a nice start...
 
Here are some more pics of what I'm dealing with. I got some pics of my new to me 35's I may not have to trim, but I won't know until I flex it out. I really don't mind losing the wells because I was planning rigging up some of that thick pond liner in their place it will provide a more flexable fender. Also, I would need to relocate the clamp that I"m pointing to. It will probably be relocated anyways. I am also going to be on the hunt for a rubbermade containter to put where my existing battery is to put my fuse blocks in. Sorry Ryoken man, your box is sweet:bow: but I'm just trying to get by with the minimum (if that's possible:rolleyes:)

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Here's a mock up of the battery put in the tray. "It puts the battery in the tray!" Sorry about that, I was watching Joe Dirt earlier. I also mocked up the tires and don't think I'll have to trim unless they rub when articulated. I have a second job at a salvage yard. So I am going to be on the look out for some F250 shock towers and some stock springs that are in better shape than mine.

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And last but not least, gauges. I have the 'Zone special gauges, sunpro I believe and some air craft style toggle switches that I am going to re locate to where the heater and radio used to be. I am going to try to put my gauges where the factory ones are at since none of them work anymore. The ammeter gauge is not hooked up yet since all of my buddies have had theirs catch fire trying to wire them up. I am also going to attempt a diamond plate dash bezel thing. We will have to see how that goes. This is all going to be done working on it 1 day or so a week so it will keep me busy long time. I work about 70 hours a week (my job at the mechanic shop is more like school than work, but it is still draining) so hopefully I will get it done in a decent amount of time. Also, as a fail safe, I will be installing a negative disconnect in there some where just to be sure there is no power drain.

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Be careful with that amp meter... There are a few ways you can wire that.. Most typical way is with a shunt... But even at that, I highly recommend against them as they can be dangerous.. A voltmeter is SOOOO much better...

Have fun and keep us updated...
 
What's the difference? Ammeter and Volt meter. I just want to be able to monitor my electrical stuff.

I also forgot to mention that I have a powermaster 140 amp altinator already installed so I should be good to run some heavy draw accessories.
 
An ammeter measures the flow of electricity passing through the wire (amps), while a voltmeter measures the potential difference between two points (voltage)

Basically, the ammeter is used to make sure that you are not drawing too many amps from the electrical system and overloading your alternator (approx 60 amps for a stock SI alt), while a volt meter gives you a quick reference of how much potential energy is left in your batteries while the truck is off / how much potential energy your alternator is producing while the engine is running.
 
I agree, thats why all Chevy trucks have had volt gauges since 78 :)

One thing that is important to mention is that volt gauges and ammeters are NOT hooked up the same. A volt meter is put between a positive wire, and a negative wire, then it measures the energy difference between the two wires, while an ammeter is put inline of a wire, and it measures the current of electricity passing through that specific wire. If you put a volt meter in where your ammeter is in the factory cluster (or vice versa) without changing the way it is wired up, you will definitely kill your gauge, and run a high risk of an electrical fire.
 
Everytime I wire something up I run the risk of electrical fire :haha: I haven't gotten that far yet but thanks for the info. What did you think of that painless wiring kit that I linked to up above?
 
I am glad you linked to that kit, since I was looking for something to hook up the dual batteries in mine when the summer ends. Let me know how that Sunpro tach works for you, I have that one and it lasted about two weeks before it quit. Decided at least for a tach that I will go Autometer. Your battery box is looking sweet. And I feel you pain for hillbilly wiring, when I first bought my K5 I found one wire connected directly to the battery, and hanging bare under the dash, glad I found it before it found a ground.
 
I personally wouldn't spend 100 bucks for the painless kit, and simply wire my own up.

A big solenoid like that is cheap, any parts house will carry them, and a regular toggle switch would be plenty to activate the solenoid when you wanted power from the second battery.

If you wanted the option of connecting the battery when the ignition is on, but disconnecting it when the ignition is off, you'd just need to get a triple position switch and run a second small relay that activates the big solenoid when the ignition is on. I'd personally have the toggle switch control the grounding for the big solenoid / small relay rather than the hot side so you can avoid issues with controlling the small relay with a hot ignition source.

Heck, here is a quick wiring diagram I just tossed together. If you've got any questions, feel free to ask :)

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IMO, your better off starting with a marine switch... Much easier to have your big cables done and routed properly first. A parellel/solenoid switch can be added at any point in time after..

In the end, a marine switch/parellel/ACR is the most flexible, simple system that can be run imo..

Todd... You should really just make up whatever your gonna do wiring wise.. The prob with a premade kit is the wires don't end up the exact length you want.. Not to mention they usually have cheesy, crimp-on connectors.. and are expensive...
 
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